I think he meant that the suspect faced “extradition,” which is what it means to send someone back to another American jurisdiction. Rendition generally means to send a suspect over seas, to face interrogation or charges. Rendition usually occurs under strict treaty terms. As far as I can tell, we use the phrase extraordinary rendition when what we’re doing is illegal. I don’t know–maybe they torture people in New York now. In any event, other than the other exciting news in the MetroWest Daily News, including the fact that tourists should come and see the world’s largest rosary (in Holliston), its interesting how the vocabulary of the GWOT is creeping into the language in every day use.

Rob Meltzer

With all due respect to Norm, who wrote the story in the MetroWest Daily News, I’m having trouble with the following two sentences:
“On Wednesday, an Orange County, N.Y., sheriff assigned to the O.C. Deadbeats Child Support Task Force contacted the state police and said they had tracked Gaither to an apartment in Framingham.
They said they had a warrant for his arrest, and they planned on renditioning him back to New York to face the charges,…”

I think he meant that the suspect faced “extradition,” which is what it means to send someone back to another American jurisdiction. Rendition generally means to send a suspect over seas, to face interrogation or charges. Rendition usually occurs under strict treaty terms. As far as I can tell, we use the phrase extraordinary rendition when what we’re doing is illegal. I don’t know–maybe they torture people in New York now. In any event, other than the other exciting news in the MetroWest Daily News, including the fact that tourists should come and see the world’s largest rosary (in Holliston), its interesting how the vocabulary of the GWOT is creeping into the language in every day use.